MLB: Umpires, Porter wrong about pitching change

MLB ruled that Astros relief pitcher Hector Ambriz should not have been allowed to enter the game in the seventh inning of last night’s loss. (Karen Warren/Chronicle)

MLB said today that Astros manager Bo Porter and the umpires from Thursday’s game vs. the Angels were wrong in their interpretation of the pitching change rule.

In the seventh inning, Porter called on reliever Wesley Wright to replace Paul Clemens with two outs. But before Wright threw a pitch, Porter brought in Hector Ambriz after the Angels had switched to pinch hitter Luis Jiminez.

Angels manager Mike Scioscia argued that Wright had to face a batter before being replaced, but the umpires sided with Porter. The Angels, who eventually rallied to win the game, played the rest of the game under protest.

MLB senior vice president Patrick Courtney confirmed today that the rules covering pitching changes was not applied correctly. “The rule covering pitching changes was not applied correctly by the umpiring crew in the 7th inning of last night’s Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – Houston Astros Game at Minute Maid Park. The matter is being reviewed.”

Here’s the rule:

(b) If the pitcher is replaced, the substitute pitcher shall pitch to the batter then at bat,

or any substitute batter, until such batter is put out or reaches first base, or until the

offensive team is put out, unless the substitute pitcher sustains injury or illness

which, in the umpire-in-chief’s judgment, incapacitates him for further play as a

pitcher.

Here’s the part of the rule that was added for this season that Porter thought applied, although it is only for pitchers who start an inning:

(d) If a pitcher who is already in the game crosses the foul line on his way to take his

place on the pitcher’s plate to start an inning, he shall pitch to the first batter until

such batter is put out or reaches first base, unless the batter is substituted for, or the

pitcher sustains an injury or illness which, in the judgment of the umpire-in-chief,

incapacitates him from pitching. If the pitcher ends the previous inning on base or

at bat and does not return to the dugout after the inning is completed, the pitcher is

not required to pitch to the first batter of the inning until he makes contact with the

pitcher’s plate to begin his warm-up pitches.

“The first thing I wanted to make sure was that the pinch hitter was in the game,” Porter said Thursday night. “That’s why I stopped before I went to the mound to make sure (Scioscia) pinch hit for the guy who was scheduled to hit.

“Once I made sure he pinch hit for the batter that was scheduled to hit, then I started toward the mound. The home plate umpire (Adrian Johnson) kind of stopped me. He’s like “Whoa! Whoa!’

“Then Scioscia started yelling, ‘He has to face the hitter.’ I just calmly explained to him my interpretation of the rule is that yes he has to face the hitter as long as he’s the hitter that’s scheduled to hit. But the hitter that was scheduled to hit had now been pinch-hit for, which now gives me the right to bring in a pitcher to face the pinch hitter.”

But Porter was looking at the wrong part of the rule, and so, for the second day in a row, MLB has had to say its umpires were wrong. A crew in Cleveland had missed on instant replay of what should have been a home run by the A’s.